DENVER — The elusive state title that Fort Morgan senior Dylan McBride has been going for the last four years is well within reach in Denver.

McBride won by fall in the first round on Thursday to reach the quarterfinals for a third straight year. He would get another win by fall, this time in the second period over Josh Grasmick of Windsor, to reach the semifinals of the 4A state tournament.

"It feels great," McBride said.

He wasted no time trying to score against Grasmick, shooting for a takedown within the first few seconds of the match. The move worked as he scored early and held Grasmick on his back for the rest of the third period.

"That is something we have been working on lately," McBride said. "We want fast takedowns right away in the match to start strong. The first takedown sets a good mood for the match."

Up 4-0 to start the second period, Grasmick chose top position to try and get the match back under control. Within a matter of seconds, McBride would score a reversal and continue to work from the top until he finished the match at the 3:03 mark with the pin.

"I feel like I was a little stronger than him," McBride said. "I told myself that I was not going home until I win a state title."

McBride reached the semifinals last year at the state tournament and lost to the No. 1 seed. His run was tougher as he admitted to feeling sick during the tournament Now as the No. 1 seed this year and feeling healthy, he hopes to finish the job and bring home his first state title.

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"I have to keep wrestling and work my moves," McBride said. "I can't be sloppy (in the semifinals)."

The semifinal match pits McBride against Cian Quiroga (22-6) of Cheyenne Mountain. For a full recap of the semifinal match, check out the semifinal results at fortmorgantimes.com.

Fort Morgan also saw Brian Paxton and James Hochanadel compete in the quarterfinal round Friday afternoon. Both would go the distance in their matches but came up short on the scoreboard and were moved to the consolation bracket.

Paxton struggled to find some offense in his match with John Underwood of Widefield. While he managed to escape to neutral position a number of times, his inability to get the takedown in the match resulted in a 7-4 decision loss.

A similar situation took place at 220 for James Hochanadel against Easton Cecil of Valor Christian. Following some early tie-ups, a takedown with two seconds left in the first period gave Cecil the 2-1 lead. He would go on to score a reversal in the second period and another in order to win by majority decision 9-1.

With their losses, Paxton and Hochanadel will look to work their way back and place in the consolation bracket over the weekend. They join Kase Givens in the second consolation round. Givens, who lost on Thursday in the first round, bounced back to win by fall in the second period over Draygan Colonese of Pine Creek. Brendan Jones did not wrestle his consolation match on Friday and was eliminated from the field.

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